Death By Fire is a short secondary quest on the road west of Codgers’ Quarry in Velen. People can be terribly cruel, especially to those of other races, and Geralt has seen humans persecute non-humans far too many times. This time he stumbles upon a particularly horrible scene: a group of thugs preparing to burn an elven woman alive.
Geralt steps in, beats the bandits and saves the elf. She thanks him by telling him about a hiding spot with some valuables. It is a small victory in a land where most victims of hatred never get rescued, and the quest does not pretend otherwise.